Last Modified: Thursday, June 20, 2013 at 11:58 p.m.

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Two cannons were raised from the Queen Anne's Revenge shipwreck site in Beaufort Inlet after a frustrating several weeks for the QAR team, which has been hampered by bad weather and sea conditions during this month's dive expedition at the site.

They started with a goal of bringing up as many as eight cannons but had none up until seas turned in their favor on Thursday.

There was redemption as two cannons broke the water's surface after nearly 300 years on the sea floor with the wreckage of the flagship of the renowned pirate Blackbeard.

"We're all lucky to be able to be here to witness this," said state archaeologist Steve Claggett.

Students from Cape Fear Community College's marine technology program contributed to the effort during their summer training voyage on the Dan Moore, the college's research ship. Divers from the Queen Anne's Revenge rigged the cannons and carried them over to the Dan Moore, where a crew of 17 CFCC students lifted the cannons onto the ship. The Dan Moore then delivered the cannons back to shore.

Divers with the state's Underwater Archaeology Branch held off on bringing up a third cannon but Claggett said raising two cannons in a single day is a successful one.

"The straps (to lift them) were on and they had just been sitting there on the ocean floor, but the weather kept them from bringing them up. This day is very satisfying," Claggett said.

For N.C. Department of Cultural Resources Secretary Susan Kluttz, who had never seen a cannon-raising at the QAR site, it was a particularly exciting morning.

"I'm so proud for North Carolina. This is such an incredible, historic day for our state, and a thrill for me to see something come up from the ocean for the first time in nearly 300 years," she said after seeing the first cannon lifted out of the water.

The boat trip out to Beaufort Inlet to see the cannons raised was hosted by Bucky and Wendi Oliver, owners of Front Street Village in Beaufort, who are among the sponsors who helped the state meet a $450,000 fundraising goal to complete the recovery of the Queen Anne's Revenge site by 2014.

"We will do everything in our power to keep that schedule," Claggett said.

An extended fall dive expedition is scheduled for the continued recovery of artifacts from the shipwreck site.

Researchers have identified 27 known cannons at the site, with 26 made of cast iron and one of bronze. Counting the two raised Thursday, 15 cannons have been recovered.

The two 6-pounders – the latest recovered – are about 8-feet long, and with the concretions covering them after hundreds of years under water, they weigh about 2,500 pounds each.

<p>BEAUFORT | A window of opportunity opened Thursday off the coast of Carteret County and history surfaced.</p><p>Twice.</p><p>Two cannons were raised from the Queen Anne's Revenge shipwreck site in Beaufort Inlet after a frustrating several weeks for the QAR team, which has been hampered by bad weather and sea conditions during this month's dive expedition at the site.</p><p>They started with a goal of bringing up as many as eight cannons but had none up until seas turned in their favor on Thursday.</p><p>There was redemption as two cannons broke the water's surface after nearly 300 years on the sea floor with the wreckage of the flagship of the renowned pirate Blackbeard.</p><p>"We're all lucky to be able to be here to witness this," said state archaeologist Steve Claggett.</p><p>Students from <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic9937"><b>Cape Fear Community College</b></a>'s marine technology program contributed to the effort during their summer training voyage on the Dan Moore, the college's research ship. Divers from the Queen Anne's Revenge rigged the cannons and carried them over to the Dan Moore, where a crew of 17 CFCC students lifted the cannons onto the ship. The Dan Moore then delivered the cannons back to shore.</p><p>Divers with the state's Underwater Archaeology Branch held off on bringing up a third cannon but Claggett said raising two cannons in a single day is a successful one.</p><p>"The straps (to lift them) were on and they had just been sitting there on the ocean floor, but the weather kept them from bringing them up. This day is very satisfying," Claggett said.</p><p>For N.C. Department of Cultural Resources Secretary Susan Kluttz, who had never seen a cannon-raising at the QAR site, it was a particularly exciting morning.</p><p>"I'm so proud for North Carolina. This is such an incredible, historic day for our state, and a thrill for me to see something come up from the ocean for the first time in nearly 300 years," she said after seeing the first cannon lifted out of the water.</p><p>The boat trip out to Beaufort Inlet to see the cannons raised was hosted by Bucky and Wendi Oliver, owners of Front Street Village in Beaufort, who are among the sponsors who helped the state meet a $450,000 fundraising goal to complete the recovery of the Queen Anne's Revenge site by 2014.</p><p>"We will do everything in our power to keep that schedule," Claggett said.</p><p>An extended fall dive expedition is scheduled for the continued recovery of artifacts from the shipwreck site.</p><p>Researchers have identified 27 known cannons at the site, with 26 made of cast iron and one of bronze. Counting the two raised Thursday, 15 cannons have been recovered.</p><p>The two 6-pounders – the latest recovered – are about 8-feet long, and with the concretions covering them after hundreds of years under water, they weigh about 2,500 pounds each.</p><p>StarNews reporter Pressley Baird contributed to this article.</p>